FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                       

09/28/2006
Southern Mongolian Human Rights Information Center
(718)786-9236
webmaster@smhric.org

Southern Mongolian Human Rights Information Center to Receive Grant from National Endowment for Democracy (NED)

New York, N. Y. – The Southern Mongolian Human Rights Information Center (SMHRIC) is proud to announce that the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) has officially approved a grant to its Southern Mongolian Human Rights Monitor Program. SMHRIC is the first Southern Mongolian organization to receive a grant from NED, which is one of the largest US institutions making grants to organizations around the world dedicated to promoting democracy.

“This indeed is exciting and very encouraging,” said Enghebatu Togochog, SMHRIC’s founder and current president, “because NED’s decision to fund our program not only is a recognition of our work raising the public’s awareness of Southern Mongolian human rights issues, but also represents tremendous support of the human rights and democracy movements of the Southern Mongolians who remain politically marginalized and socially and economically disadvantaged in Chinese society.”

Established in 1999 in New York, the volunteer-based nonprofit group aims to promote and protect the human rights of Mongols in Southern Mongolia. Over the past seven years, SMHRIC has worked hard to publicize the government of China’s rampant violation of basic human rights and denial of fundamental constitutional freedoms promised to the Mongols. Due to both historical reasons and heavy government censorship and control of information within China, the international community has relatively been unfamiliar with the human rights situation of Southern Mongolia. One of the goals of the SMHRIC will be to inform the world of what is happening in Southern Mongolia. “The NED grant therefore is an encouraging big step in helping us achieve this goal,” said Mr. Togochog.

In addition to improving the free flow of information between Southern Mongolia and the international community, other important goals of the Southern Mongolian Human Rights Monitor Program include: 1. raising the general awareness of Southern Mongolian human rights issues, and 2. educating government institutions in both Southern Mongolia and China about internationally accepted human rights standards.

<Back>